Horse Breeding in India. 



district authorities and local boards, they organise and 

 control operations for combating cattle disease, and help to 

 instruct Indian students at veterinary colleges. The returns 

 of agricultural stock are not complete for all provinces, and 

 are altogether wanting for Bengal ; but the total number of 

 horses and ponies in British India, outside Bengal, is re- 

 turned at 1,133,000, while the number of mules and donkeys 

 is given at 1,101,000. The North- West Provinces and Oudh 

 return 493,000 horses and ponies, and 309,000 mules and 

 donkeys, while the Punjab returns 557,000 mules and 

 donkeys, and 271,000 horses; the Bombay returns show 

 152,000 horses, and 67,000 mules and donkeys. The totals 

 are somewhat above those for the previous year, except in 

 the North- Western Provinces, where the numbers of mules 

 and donkeys fell off. The number of stallions kept by 

 Government for horse-breeding, at the end of the year 

 1895-96, was 361, or 11 less than in the previous year; 51 

 new stallions were bought, and 62 were struck off the register, 

 mostly because they were old and worn out. The new 

 stallions were chiefly English or Australian thoroughbreds 

 and Arabs. At the end of the year there were no Arabs, 99 

 Norfolk trotters, and 18 thoroughbreds. There were, in 

 March, 1896, also 385 pony stallions for Galloway and pony 

 mares ; and the number of donkey sires bought during the 

 year was 49, while 46 died or were sold. The number kept 

 by Government for mule-breeding was 385 at the end of the 

 year. Of the total, 192 were Italian donkeys, but these 

 animals are very expensive, and a gradually increasing 

 number of large donkey sires is being obtained from donkey 

 breeders in the Punjab and Baluchistan. The donkey sires 

 imported during the year were from Italy and Persia, and ol 

 good stamp. Besides the Government stallions, 171 horse 

 and donkey stallions were maintained by district boards, and 

 a considerable number by native states. The officers of the 

 Veterinary Department give every assistance to chiefs and 

 to local bodies in obtaining good sires. 



At the end of the year, 23,250 branded mares were on the 

 list as available for horse-breeding, and 5,619 for pony- 

 breeding, from sires kept by Government. Of this number, 



